ISLAMABAD: Khan Habibullah Khan and Mirza Mohammad Tahir — People’s Party candidates — were elected Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Senate defeating their joint Opposition rivals — Khwaja Mohammad Safdar (CML) and Barrister Zahurul Haq (NAP) respectively — securing 32 votes each against 13 in a House of 45.

The National Assembly Speaker, Chaudhry Fazal Ilahi, presided over the session during the election of the Chairman. He withdrew from the chair after administering oath to Habibullah Khan who presided over the rest of today’s [Aug 6] session which continued to elect the Deputy Chairman and hear members. … The visitors in the galleries included Begum Nusrat Bhutto, and the Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Abdul Hafeez Pirzada. Later, the Senate adjourned sine die. The new Chairman announced at the end that the Parliament will meet in a joint session at 8-30 a.m. on Aug 10 to elect the President under the new Constitution. — Correspondent

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies from New Delhi,] food riots … against rising prices spread to several Indian states … as a rail strike continued to hold up essential supplies in the country already faced with a food crisis.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2023